Stitched Up Heart
by miyouimi
Summary: A Fashion major at Traverse Arts University, Roxas has everything going for him. That is, until he meets an idiot redhead. With a partying Sora, an overprotective Riku, and no Naminé, can Roxas survive the new semester? And why does he hate guys so much?
1. Red Heads that Get you Fired

**Title**: Stitched Up Heart

**Summary**: A Fashion major at Traverse Arts University, Roxashas everything going for him. That is, until he meets an idiot redhead. With a partying Sora, an overprotective Riku, and no Naminé, can Roxas survive the new semester? And why does he hate guys so much?

**Rating:** T for teen

**Disclaimer**: Sooooo…Kingdom Hearts does not belong to me. Come on, if it did, we all know how much of a bajillionaire I'd be. 8D

**A/N**: Hey kiddies, I'm back with a brand new story! :D Yeah, don't remind me about the 'A Night of Sin' one I didn't finish…I'll do it! I promise, I will try! I may change this to M later – I'm still not sure about it. Depends on how dirty Roxas wants to get… :D

Oh, yeah, and I was contemplating adding in music to every chapter, but I'm still not sure about it, so I didn't do it for the first chapter. Comment if you think there should be some songficness to this or not. I'm still iffy about it. Besides that, I hope you like it!

**Chapter one: Red Heads that Get You Fired**

A young looking man, blonde hair and blue eyes shining in the dull window, sighed as he continued fixing the window display at the front of the fashion clothes store in which he worked. He'd worked at 'Noir' for about two weeks, and began to further realize just how demanding the fashion world really was.

It was a ritzy place, filled with designer clothes that flew off the racks when some celebrity or another would wear one of their designs. The job was tiring, and he'd often have sore feet by the end of the day. Working at a store where people bitched all of the time to be waited on did take a lot of energy, especially when pompous rich accents hurt his ears and puppies named 'Paris Hilton' peed on the floor.

It was cold as hell by the window too since it was winter, but he couldn't help it. Besides, even though he felt like he was doing the grunt work now, he knew this job would get better. It wasn't as if he minded it terribly, yet he was itching to do something more challenging instead of fixing window displays and making sure everything article of clothing was in its proper place. He'd just started too, of course, but had been very lucky to work at such a high end place. Heck, he'd been lucky to even be accepted to the Traverse Arts University, which was one of the most prestigious universities for art and fashion.

When his brother got accepted, he knew applying there was necessary, because just knowing Sora and Riku were going to the same school without him felt lonely. He didn't expect to get in considering he was aiming for the fashion school, but he persevered in his designs and patterns and loved every outfit he ever helped make, so he thought perhaps that would be just enough to get him accepted. Apparently it was. With his acceptance letter, he thanked his lucky stars and moved up to New York.

Even if he'd got accepted, he learned very fast that paying off loans would really be a bitch. So, last semester he went looking for a job, and thanked God when he got one because he wasn't sure how much more ramen or Riku's awful (sad, but true) cooking he and his brother could live off of. Hell, he and his brother didn't even have enough to move out of the dorm they lived together in, let alone be able to pay for bills. Hopefully that would change. However, that big fat paycheck may not arrive at the end of the week, because for right now, work was the last thing on his restless mind.

Sighing, Roxas tried to focus his attention to outside the window, but his vision blurred. To no avail, he attempted to distract himself, but he inevitably recalled what had happened last night with a grimace.

God, how could he of screwed up so badly?

Cringing back to the memories of last night, the older teen named Roxas held his head in his hand, shielding his puffy red eyes from the passersby's on the street. He could already recall the event with an untimely horror, because just as he remembered the fumbled, completely stupid event, he managed to trip over his feet and take down the nearest male mannequin with him.

Once the unfortunate tumble was over, Roxas sighed in exasperation, laying there as he let the memory wash back over him.

"_Roxas, we're through_!" _Naminé held her head as she looked over the blonde haired teen that was sitting on the floor, encompassed in rose petals and vanilla scented shampoo. Roxas had screwed up again in pleasing his girlfriend, and for her, that was the last straw. One does not mess up an anniversary evening, especially when it dealt with flowers and bathtubs._

"_N-_ _Naminé! Wait! What do you mean? You…can't! I…"_

"_You're too clumsy, Roxas! You can't do anything right, and it's so frustrating!" She wiped her mouth on the back of her hand, looking away angrily. For him, that little movement cut him deeply. Their lips had been touching just moments before he slipped on the open soap bottle that was leaking on the floor and brought her down with him…Did he taste bad? Is that she was wiping the kiss away so nonchalantly?_

_Trying again to please her, he took the broken rose petals and gathered them in his hands. "But! Naminé …I really do love you. You're the nicest girl I know." With a plea, he held them up quietly. When her glare pierced through him, he dropped the broken rose petals and just stared at her with a sinking heart. _

"_Roxas, I'm sorry, I just don't have the patience anymore."_

"_You don't…have the patience for me?" His big blue eyes stared up childishly, and he wondered if, all along, she had really felt this way. When did it get to this point?_

"_I may be the nicest Roxas, but I know you don't have it in you to love me all of the way, and that's just frustrating. I'm sorry…"_

_And she left Roxas there, confused and bumbling as ever. He hadn't seen her since last night, though she still had to come back to pick up her stuff sometime._

Remaining where he fell, Roxas inhaled sharply to hold back a shaky breath. His eyes stung again and his chest tightened, but he held back the pain. She was right – he was a failure that hadn't even been able to make her happy. He failed at making anybody happy except for when he was designing, and even that led to many disappointments. Sometimes he wondered if he was really just letting everyone down lately, or that he was just letting himself down.

"Ughh, I can't get anything fucking right," Roxas whispered.

"I'm sure you're not all that pathetic!"

The blonde man, hiding his face in his hand from shame and sadness, let his vision crack through for just a few moments to get a good glimpse at the fiery haired man now leaning down to him. Out of old habit, his eyebrows furrowed in frustration at the flaming red hair. He did not need this specific customer asking a stupid question while he was obvious busy. Forcing a smile, Roxas removed the one hand from his face all of the way and reminded himself, once again, that if he did not please the customer, they would submit bad reviews about him; even if the customer was a harassing idiot who came back every day to annoy the living hell out of you.

"Oh, don't mind me. I did have a question, but if you're busy with that mannequin…" Grinning, the flame haired man let a small smirk curl on his lips slowly.

First, confusion, then realization occurred when Roxas noticed that his hand was resting on a bump of some kind. Looking back, Roxas mentally slapped himself. Of course it would be laying on the male mannequin's imaginary package! Dammit it all! And of course his hand couldn't of been anywhere else when this customer so happened to approach him with a – probably stupid – question.

"Well, he probably wouldn't make that good of a lover, but at least you could touch whatever you wanted without any type of protest…."

What the hell as this guy's problem? This was the third time he'd come to bother him this week! It wasn't even like he came in to buy anything. Ha, he probably couldn't even afford anything in here. Roxas snorted at the thought, but then frowned when he noticed Axel continue to talk. He _really_ did not need this right now.

"And if you get a kick out of it…"

Roxas, just about seething with frustration now, removed his hand from the mannequin. Sadly, it was frozen sinfully while he listened with a horrified expression at the idiot's comments, which didn't go unnoticed by other customers now watching the situation from afar. Roxas could see it on the news now, 'young teen fired for assaulting a valuable mannequin'. He got up to fix his now wrinkled clothes and sighed slowly.

"Or if that doesn't satisfy you, there's always my…"

Glancing over towards the blabbering customer, he took an extra long breath to help him get through this one. He knew he had to quickly calm himself and the customer down, or other customers would get offended. Just the man's fiery red hair and wrinkled clothes made customers offended. Actually, any kind of clothes that weren't designer were looked down upon in this store, and Roxas was sure his managers were hoping to get the loitering customer to leave soon. Nicely, of course.

Interrupting the man's train of thought with a forced, "hello sir, how are you today?" Roxas tried, one more time, to tell himself not to lose his temper with this guy.

"How am I? Well, ya know…" And the one-sided conversation began.

Oh, God.

Would this ever end?

Smile faltering, Roxas managed to find every way possible to maim this guy in his head while ignoring what he was saying. Ahh, if dreams only came true. Hopefully he would leave soon, but Roxas could tell his bad mood was getting the best of him. That was very bad, because sometimes he got a temper that was difficult to control.

"And I gotta say, those blue eyes of yours…"

WAIT! When did the subject of his blue eyes come to light? Suddenly, the man actually did have his full attention, and with each passing moment, Roxas felt himself grow more disgusted. He was just sitting there listening to his compliments without ever saying anything! Damn, he hoped he hadn't been encouraging anything by not saying a word.

"And I can't believe that you're just sitting there watching me with that dumbfounded face. It's so stupid looking its cute!"

So he had been feeding the flames. Great. Well, fuck. What does one say to this? And stupid looking? He was not stupid looking! Taking in a deep breath, Roxas bit his cheek and ground his teeth together. If he could just get through it one more time, perhaps the guy wouldn't come back.

"Sir, is there something I can help you with?" he asked with clenched teeth and a forced smile.

"Help me?" Axel raised an eyebrow and smirked, causing Roxas to shudder. "There's a lot you could help me with." The arrogant asshole was just egging him on and on, and Roxas didn't know how much more his ears could take.

Suddenly, Roxas felt am arm around his shoulder and an odd grin at his right. He could already trace the outline of the man's teardrop tattoos and his tall figure towering over his petite one. Roxas eyes widened with surprise and the contact was very unwelcome, but he stood there, frozen. He couldn't move, couldn't think, and he didn't exactly know why it made him so uncomfortable. Damn, he should really pay attention to his surroundings. Maybe that was what Namine was talking about…Finally after a good half a minute, Roxas reacted.

"W-what are you doing? Don't touch me! Stop harassing me! I swear, touch me again and I'll have charges against you!" Roxas flinched at the touched and pushed him off violently, as if the reaction was already programmed in his brain. And as far as Roxas knew, it really was – he hated random strangers touching him, but he hated men touching him even more.

"Jeez man, what's wrong with you? Jumpy much? It's not harassment if I say you're cute! Oh…wait." The red head thought to himself, but unconsciously rested a hand on Roxas' shoulder as he did so.

"Just get off!" Roxas yelled, slapping the man's hand away, and then making an 'oh shit' face as he realized he just physically hit a customer. He could already feel his palms getting sweaty in nervousness. He realized he was on a one way road to getting fired now, so he pulled his hands back as quickly as he could. Luckily, though, the red head just crossed his arms and examined Roxas with a puzzled face.

"Tsk, tsk, now that's not very nice. Aren't employees supposed to treat customers a certain way?"

"Aren't customers supposed to actually buy something and save idiotic questions for themselves?" Roxas cringed at his spiteful comeback, hoping to the shred of an ounce of his dignity that something or someone out there would give him a break and that this idiot wouldn't report him or try to get him fired.

"Oh, so you can actually say something feisty, eh Blondie? Pretty short for your age, too, huh?"

"Why do you keep bothering me?"

"How old are ya anyway?" He asked, poking the blonde's cheek with one of his slender fingers. "I'd guess…ermmm…'bout 18, huh?"

Roxas, already at his wits end, slightly pushed the man back with a snarl forming on his face. "I'm 19!" Now customers were really gathering around the scene, and Roxas' pent up emotions flew out from last night. Hearing the customer's whispers around him, Roxas temper slowed as he tried to regain composure.

'_Did you see that?' _one customer whispered to another.

'_He pushed that poorly dressed customer!' _her friend responded.

'_How very rude!'_

'_Hmph, I think I'll leave. I don't shop here to see this trash!'_

The two left the scene and walked out with their heads held up in distaste. Oh shit, they really were leaving, along with a few others who put down the clothes they thought about purchasing. However, the red head didn't even notice, and so he continued on.

"Really? Man, I bet you get people asking if you're 16 all of the time!"

"What does it matter?" Roxas snapped back more quietly this time, eyes narrowing. Hell, he didn't even care if he got fired anymore, his life was already traveling down to shit anyway – his girlfriend left him, people still thought he was 16, and customers were apparently turning more bitchy by the minute. Oh, and he forgot to mention that he had a major paper due on Wednesday that he hadn't even started. How did that even happen? Oh yeah, because his professor was a douche who assigned a reading assignment over Christmas break and then required a whole paper be written over it in the first week of school. Why the hell did he put off the damn English credit anyways to next semester anyways?

"Hmmm, I guess it really doesn't matter, now does it?" he nonchalantly asked, the grin on his face growing so wide that Roxas' hand jerked violently, the incomprehension of the man's stupidity finally frying Roxas' brain.

"I just- I don't even…Why mention it, then?" Roxas burst out. His voice rose to the loudest it had been all day. However, the best this seemed to accomplish was the red head to laugh. Roxas was going crazy – bat shit, mad, fucking insane. That was it. This was all a bad dream – it had to be, because he had never met such a pestering person in his entire life.

"Whoa, can all people who are fun sized scream that loud?" the red head asked, putting a hand over his ear. All the while, even though the blonde had literally just yelled in his ear, the red head still had a smile on his face.

Roxas broke, then and there. A dam of his pent up emotions traveled up to his face and it slowly became red. Finally, after a few moments, his mouth opened slowly and his face began to shake with a built up response ready to explode. To any passerby, it was one of the scariest sights they had seen all week.

"Leave me alone! You fucking come in here every day and touch me and tell me weird things and, God, it's an absolute must to compliment me all the damn time! So, please, please, just stop."

Finally, for the first time that day, Axel appeared confused. "Why not report me, then?"

Roxas, voice hoarse, replied with a slow, "what?"

"If you hate me so much, it probably would have been smarter to report me for bothering you, huh? Silly blondie," the red head mentioned, another sly smile forming on his lips.

Roxas stared, and stared, and then felt like a dumbass. Just before he could respond, the red head interjected.

"Oh, hey, looks like you'll be busy in a moment…Sorry, man. Name's Axel by the way. Got it memorized?"

Before Roxas could even begin to comprehend what this Axel was saying, he felt a light tap on his shoulder and almost uncontrollably peed his pants when he turned around. Almost.

One of his manager's, a light brunette with a sweet face named Aerith, shook her head slowly at him. Aerith had a sad, sallow look on her face, and the fact that she kept shaking her head disappointedly made Roxas' entire face pale.

"Roxas, we saw the whole thing. I'm so sorry…"

Well…shit.

"Cloud wants to see you in the back room, Roxas," she whispered. Oh, fuckity, fuck. She just looked like someone died and was having their dead body dragged around mercilessly. It was sad because he actually liked Aerith, and that look she gave him made him made him feel guilty.

Instantly, he grew quiet and nodded, knowing the inevitable was about to come. Damn, he should have just kept his mouth shut. He should have reported the red head before it got out of hand; that would have been the sensible thing to do. Slapping his hand to his face, he dragged it down, replacing his wide eyes with narrowed eyes.

"See you later, blondie!" Axel waved as the blonde began walking, but that didn't stop him from turning around and giving the tall man a glare. If he hadn't lost his cool, maybe the red head would have disappeared and he would have kept his job.

As Roxas walked slowly into the back office, and had a burning rage still bottled up inside to kill a certain red head, he could feel his already cold fingers get colder and his small form shake. He knew what was to happen - it was inevitable. When he finally opened the door and saw his manager, Cloud, he felt his stomach drop.

"Roxas," Cloud said slowly "do you know why you're back here?"

"U-ummm, yes?"

"Good, then I hope you understand my decision on the matter," Cloud said slowly, and Roxas could feel his world cave in.

"What! Y-you can't! You saw what that guy was doing, didn't you?"

"Roxas, I'm sorry, but we can't keep you around. Customers saw – some have already complained – and we can't let you behavior reflect on the store. You should have reported the incident earlier instead of taking it in your own hands and harassing the customer. We can't have someone who can't communicate well to the customer. "

"Y-you don't understand! I need this job!"

"Perhaps you should learn to control your temper more, as that behavior was very unacceptable for this type of environment."

Cloud shook his head, stood up, and put a hand on his shoulder. "There's nothing I can do. Roxas, I really am sorry," he mumbled, and then got up and walked out of the door with Aerith following close behind while wondering how in the hell he was going to please the disgruntled customers. Roxas stood there for a moment, and felt his body shake as he realized he dug his own grave.

"Why does everyone keep apologizing?" Roxas asked, standing there with a dumbfounded expression on his face. He couldn't believe anything that had happened to him these past few days – harassment, getting fired from his job, having a butt load of homework, and losing the most important person to him…his girlfriend Naminé

**A/N:** Done! Pweeeease, review! I shall give you a cookie and a banner that says 'AkuRoku' on it! :D You know, maybe you can hang it in your room or something? ' Oh, and I'll let you in on a secret…I wrote ahead a few chapters because I knew it would keep me from quitting this story, but new ideas are welcome anyways if you feel like it.


	2. Red Heads that Give You Ice Cream

**Title**: Stitched Up Heart

**Summary**: A Fashion major at Traverse Arts University, Roxas has everything going for him. That is, until he meets an idiot redhead. With a partying Sora, an overprotective Riku, and no Naminé, can Roxas survive the new semester? And why does he hate guys so much?

**Rating:** T for teen (will possibly be M later. Sexy time? :D)

**Disclaimer**: Again, I don't own anything.

**A/N**: Y U NO REVIEW MOAR? I said I would give out cookies! D: *throws freshly baked cookies at reviewers* SEE? Go eat the cookies and review!

I'm still contemplating whether this story should be M or not. I'm tipping on a yes so if you see the rating change suddenly, don't be too surprised, I guess. Anywaaays, here it is. 8]

**Chapter two: Red ****Heads that Give You Ice Cream**

Roxas stood there for a few moments, looking out into the dark alley way of the streets by the small shop he was just fired from, suddenly remembering when Sora told him that if he needed help getting home when it was dark, he should call Riku. If he wasn't so small, and this wasn't New York, then he wouldn't be so worried, but because he was short, and the crime rate in New York was high, he didn't exactly feel safe walking home alone tonight. But no way in hell was he calling Riku; that would just be admitting defeat.

Oh well, what was the worst that could happen?

The moment Roxas stepped out of the shop into the cold street, a powerful gust blew open the door with a strong force and whipped the scarf around his neck over his eyes. Pushed back a step, his foot then began to slip on the ice below and his feet gave from under him. Falling back onto his butt, he winced and let out a very audible curse.

As Roxas picked his stuff back up while on the ground and put them together, he remained in the snow for a few moments, and before he could fully stand up, he heard a voice in the shadows say, "hey, blondie!"

Gasping loudly, and having a what literally looked like a heart attack, Roxas slipped back, hit his back against the wall, managed to fly back forward, and land on his face to get a mouth full of dirty city snow. Immediately, he heard laughing coming from the direction of the voice, and he couldn't believe the day could get any worse. Managing to stand up with whatever ounce of dignity he had left, Roxas spit out some snow and wiped his mouth on the back of his hand.

He brushed off snow and dirt from his heavy blue pea coat, fixed his stylish collar, faltered one more time, and then tightened his grey scarf back over his exposed neck. After completely fixed, he unsteadily tottered past the idiot that got him fired and shoved his hands into his coat pockets at least trying to keep upright on the ice. He hoped this gesture would help him avoid having a conversation, but of course that didn't stop motor mouth from following him while laughing.

"Ha! You really have no balance!" the red head snickered, tagging alongside Roxas. Axel had adjusted his own scarf when his amusement died down and ran his hands through his hair. A white, graphic t-shirt with long black sleeves poked through the heavy black jacket he wore and his light brown messenger bag tagged along to finish the interesting combination.

"Please, just go away," Roxas sighed, truly wanting to go home to relieve the headache that was now forming in every possible part of his head. The side of his face also kind of hurt from when he fell, so he was sure a bruise would be there by tomorrow. Wonderful.

"Wanna talk? I've got some time to spare." Roxas shook his head as if someone just hit him on the head with a blunt object and he couldn't think straight. Simply staring at Axel for a few moments, he finally – decidedly, this was actually the worst option – to respond.

"You just got me fired from my job and gave me a heart attack! Why would I want to talk to-?"

"Ice cream?" Axel cut in before Roxas could continue with his rant, and Roxas' eyebrows furrowed.

"What?" Roxas eyed him suspiciously as if he just grew another head. He was so stirred up by the random acts the red head did by now that his brain literally began to shut down and he stopped walking.

"Want some ice cream?" Axel repeated with the same glint in his eyes from earlier in the store.

"What the hell are you talking about?" What was this, a kidnapping? Was the red head trying to lead him back to a white van with some sweetness? Fuck no.

"I bought you some!" Axel exclaimed while pulling out a wrapped Popsicle with happy letters all over it that spelled 'Sea Salt Ice cream – the best you'll ever have!' Roxas hesitated for a moment after noticing the flavor and his mouth watered, but shook his head. How could he even think for a second that it looked good?

"It's the middle of winter!" His eyes flashed to Axel incredulously, not truly believing that he was so much of an idiot that he couldn't keep up with the seasons. Oh…no, wait, that was believable.

"So? Ice cream can still be enjoyed in the winter," Axel defended while still holding out the ice cream for Roxas to grab. He waved it in front of the blonde's face, but Roxas pushed it down to glare. Frustration rising to levels he didn't want to deal with, he decided to cut the little meeting short. First and foremost, he was not about to let the idiot kidnap him and second of all, there was no way ice cream was going to make amends for getting him fired. And to top it all off, he was a guy, and that was the last thing Roxas could stand. He never really tried to justify why he did hate the same gender, but the initial hate was just always there.

"Leave me alone, asshole. You get me fired from my job and try to fix it with ice cream? Like hell."

Axel stared for a moment, his cheerful and playful demeanor vanishing. "Hey, don't blame me, Blondie," Axel started. "I didn't expect you to yell or push me. You got yourself fired," he stated smoothly with a raised eyebrow. Placing a hand on his hip, he returned the stare he was getting until Roxas looked away. Instead, Roxas chose to glare at the ground.

"You were harassing me! What was I supposed to do? Act calmly when someone is hanging all over you? And that could be poisonous for all I know." Pointing to the dangling ice cream from Axel's hands, Roxas frowned deeply and curled his hands into fists. To keep from his temper getting the best of him again, he forced his arms to his side, but his knuckles were still white and tense.

No, he was so done with this bullshit. Shaking his head and unfurling his tense fingers, Roxas chose instead to drop the whole situation and walk away. That seemed best the best solution to the problem, but of course it wouldn't turn out to be the easiest.

"I'm sorry, ya know. You were obviously having a bad day, so I was trying to help," Axel called out after him.

"That's your definition of helping?" The blonde stopped in his tracks and looked over his shoulder to raise an unamused eyebrow. Really now? That was helping? Man, the last time he checked, helping didn't get someone fired from their job.

"Yeah, I was trying to make you laugh…" Axel said, his sentence trailing off at the last couple of words and his tone almost…genuine sounding.

Before Roxas took another step, his body went ridged and his breath stopped in his throat at what Axel had said and the sincere tone in which he said it. Hearing something so unexpected, Roxas thought he had misheard the red head at first, when in reality his ears had picked up everything just fine. When he finally was able to wrap around what the words initially were, he felt immobile.

"You…what?" Roxas looked back to the red head with confusion. He was trying to joke around? He didn't expect the explanation, or the kindness, so he just stood there in his surprise. He was expecting more asshole comments, but not this. Was he just being so uptight in the store that he didn't realize the other was joking? The red head - all he was trying to do was cheer him up with a little laughter? Roxas wondered if that was really it, and even though the back of his mind was telling him that it wasn't, he was still stuck to the ground and unmoving.

"Man, and look where that got me," Axel continued talking to himself and crossed his arms with a sigh. He didn't take notice to what Roxas had asked, instead choosing to mutter to himself about trying not to help blonde's ever again.

"Why?" Roxas asked, speaking up more so Axel could hear.

"You looked so down on yourself. Humor _is_ the best medicine, right?" Axel asked matter of factly with a shrug.

So, he really was trying to help? Help with what, though? Why would he want to help anyways? That didn't seem like help at all to the Blonde, and he didn't know how to process the new found information.

He was still damn well pissed at the red head and didn't really trust him, but he suddenly thought back to earlier in the store. Were his intentions really to be an asshole? His comments appeared jerkish in nature, and Roxas took them as insults, as any normal person probably would, but maybe if he had loosened up a little he would have realized the other was only joking. What would he gain by going in there and bothering an employee anyway? It didn't seem like he really did want to kidnap him or harass him, because that would have already been done in an alleyway that dark. He wasn't acting like he got some sick pleasure from getting him fired, so Roxas stood there, confused at another's apparent kindness.

Axel sighed at the lack of response from the blonde and ran his hand through his red hair. "Look, I really didn't know that you'd get fired. Sorry that I-"

"You mean laughter," Roxas cut in.

"What?" As if not hearing the Blonde correctly, Axel strode forward a few more steps and bent down a bit so he could hear him.

"Laughter is the best medicine," Roxas corrected quietly. Watching the ice cream still dangling from Axel's fingertips, he decided to go against his instincts and take something from a stranger. Roxas stood there and stared for a good few moments before hesitantly taking the ice cream and clutching it in his already frozen fingers. Why the hell did it have to be ice cream, let alone his favorite flavor? Observing the ice cream for a moment, Roxas nodded slowly.

Axel blinked at his suddenly empty hand.

"You really want it?" he asked, confused about the sudden change in decision.

"Yeah. Thanks…I guess." This was weird. He hated the same gender and said he always would, and yet he thanked the idiot. Fucking hell, he was going to die before the day was over.

Axel rubbed the back of his neck. "No problem. You looked like you needed some cheering up so…"

"It's my favorite flavor," Roxas admitted quietly, slowly unwrapping the ice cream though his lips were already chilled blue from the cold. He didn't mind the cold, but did mind the frigid wind blowing past his face and rubbing the tips of his ears raw. Oh well, it wasn't bad enough to cause frostbite, so he could endure it for the taste of ice cream.

"What, really? Your favorite?" Axel asked excitedly, almost startling Roxas to slipping on the ice again.

Once balanced, he wondered why Axel reacted like that. Roxas' glance was steady and calculating as he tried to understand the red head's actions. What reason would there be for Axel being happy? He still didn't understand the other's intentions, but Roxas decided to go with it for the free ice cream, because it actually didn't sound too bad about now.

Quite appeased by the idea of having one of his favorite foods, Roxas stuffed the Popsicle in his mouth and licked slowly, continuing to walk along and Axel quietly. The red head presence put him on edge, but he could stand it long enough just as long as Axel didn't talk. But of course, how the hell was that possible?

"Hey…I'm, um, sorry. Ya know, sometimes I just ramble so much I just forget what I'm even saying." Axel laughed and scratched the back of his head.

Roxas' eyes narrowed in agreement, but then he sighed in realization at how much of a dick he himself was being. He really shouldn't have yelled so loudly or reacted so badly. He should've calmly handled the situation back at the store, but of course he let his temper get the best of him again. He wondered if Axel's actions were really just playful cheering up or whether his own bad mood shifted it to make Axel's behavior seem like that of an annoying asshole. Either way, Roxas did have to attribute the losing of his job to some of his own faults.

"It wasn't really all your fault, you know – I was just having a bad day." With an awkward half smile that fell as instantly as it came, Roxas held out his now cold, exposed hand for Axel to shake, even though he really didn't intend to get to know the guy.

"My name's Roxas….just don't harass or touch me anymore, okay?" Roxas muttered, and after Axel shook his hand, he hustled his feet to try to get as far from the red head as fast as he could. He apologized, that was it, and now he just wanted the damn man to leave him alone.

All he wanted to do was go home, sit and stare and the wall for a good hour while eating his ice cream, sit and stare at the wall some more, try not to think about Naminé – oh, Naminé - and attempt (without accomplishment of course) to write a major paper. Yep, what a party. Before Roxas could escape the hellish memories of the previous week though, Axel tailed along like a virus that wouldn't go away.

Of course…and yet, Roxas couldn't really see the guy as a complete asshole anymore. He couldn't really imagine the guy being hated by anyone - he probably had a lot of friends, and Roxas was very sure of the fact that he was probably the most talkative out of all of them. Well, what with his distracting hand movements, his humor, and loud, almost demanding voice.

Roxas then realized, as he continued to walk home, that it probably wasn't a good idea to lead a potential stalker right to where his apartment was, but to the hell with it, he wasn't about to waste his time trying to get rid of him. As long as he kept his hands to himself and didn't try anything funny, Roxas couldn't care less. As the blonde shuffled along the ice with the red head, he noticed Axel tighten his scarf, rub his cold hands together, and shove them into his pants pocket before opening his mouth once again to speak.

"So what's wrong, Blondie?"

"My name's Roxas!" he grumbled, dropping his ice cream to shoot the red head a glare.

"Oh, right, sorry. So what's wrong?"

"What's wrong…?" Roxas asked open-endedly, silently continuing to eat his ice cream while thinking of Axel's question. He was sure by now his lips really did appear blue.

"Yeah, every other time when I went in to cheer you up you weren't that…err, angry. I mean, don't get me wrong, I like feisty people…Demyx is pretty feisty and girly but ya know..." Roxas cut in with a look as soon as he could to keep the guy from continuing with his life's story, and Axel grinned a little sheepishly.

After Axel shut up, Roxas thought for a few moments, and then those few moments turned into a minute or so. He could hear their feet shuffling along the ice in the silent city street, the cars skidding on the city slush, the swinging of Axel's brown messenger bag, the wind whipping the frozen trees, the chattering of his teeth, and the nervous ticking going off in his head at the thought of whether or not he should just start telling this random stranger about his life. Frozen by now, he adjusted his cold hands to bring them back to life, let out a huff of visible breath and let his eyes wander about the brightened city lights gleaming off of the snow. He inhaled sharply, and then glanced back to Axel.

Ah, what the hell?

It's not like he had anyone else to go to with his problems, let alone anyone he could really talk to…well, besides Sora, but that usually ended up with an over sympathetic talk from his brother which then resulted in him going to his room later to eat a whole pint of ice cream. His friend count was about 2, downsized by Naminé breaking up with him, and he could tell when he was a lone later, his thoughts of Naminé would eat at the edges of his happiness to the point where he would wake up for days feeling weak, achy, and sick.

Roxas, enveloped in his thoughts, didn't realize he hesitated in his answer so long that it had been a good three minutes before his Popsicle was completely finished and he shoved it in his coat pocket and Axel decided to say something. All the time in between, Axel had been observing Roxas trying to guess what was wrong, but finally gave in to say something.

"What, are you mute now? Hm, ya know, you don't really talk much besides for when I'm teasing you…It's funny."

Roxas, brought from his inner thoughts, went over what Axel had said slowly, and then looked at him confusedly. Oh, so that's why Axel got on his nerves so much, just so he could see Roxas' silly reactions; just so he could bring Roxas out from his shell and the bad mood he had been in. The guy wasn't necessarily trying to get him fired, but tried – in his own stupid way, of course - to cheer him up. Roxas blinked a few times, and then thought about how weird that really sounded.

"Is that how you make all of your friends? Annoy the shit out of them until they pay attention to you?"

"Hmmm, I guess so. So we're friends now, hm?" Axel asked and raised a fist as if he felt a sense of accomplishment.

A bubbling feeling forming in his chest, Roxas was suddenly amused by his declaring that they were friends. Roxas then began to laugh, really thinking about how strange of a way that was to make friends. Axel, so used to seeing an angry Roxas, grinned wide.

"Whoa, whoa! You laughed!" he exclaimed excitedly as if his mission was accomplished. Before the interesting moment could continue though, Roxas uncontrollably spewed out information he was trying so hard to hold in, letting the words tumble aimlessly from his mouth without control.

"She broke up with me last night," Roxas blurted out suddenly.

Axel still laughing, stopped abruptly and appeared startled for a moment before his brain acquired and processed the information. Before he could answer to this revelation, Roxas continued on with this upheaval of problems, and he didn't know why all of his restrained feelings were bursting out at once like the contents of a bottle breaking on concrete.

"My gir- I mean, my ex-girlfriend…she broke up with me and I…I still don't know why."

"Yesterday?"

"Yeah…"

Axel, while walking along beside the smaller blonde, fiddled with the ends of his scarf in thought and his eyes wandered to the ground with a frown on his face. Fearing he made the situation awkward, Roxas too fiddled with his scarf and the Popsicle stick that was still in his pocket, slowly digging his nails into the stick. He didn't know why the response was so needed, but he knew he needed one. Well, a response besides the pitying one from Sora or the useless one from Riku.

"Man, I don't know what to tell you. That really is too bad."

Well, that was blunt. Breath hitching in his throat, he held down a choked noise that threatened to bubble up from surprise. Roxas looked away from his expectant gaze at Axel and frowned, guessing the advice he wanted hear would not come. He didn't know what the hell he expected. This _was_ a random stranger, how could he help him?

"My boyfriend broke up with me a month ago. At first, I didn't know how to handle myself. It's hard, ya know…I'm sorry."

"Boyfriend?" Roxas asked, stunned. Well, he wasn't too sure it was that surprising. After walking in a drunken Riku and Sora…well…drunkenly locking lips in a manner that could be compared to dying fish, he was so scarred he was sure nothing would surprise him anymore. At least they didn't remember what happened the next day, and he was sure as hell not going to tell them. Seeing two people that were liked his brothers and that acted like brothers towards each other was just wrong. Besides, with what the world seemed like it was headed to, he didn't think anyone would find it too odd really.

"Yeah, Demyx…That sad thing is that we still live together, but we're just friends. It's better that way," Axel said slowly, but Roxas noticed his eyebrows furrow and his expression twist slightly as he continued to stare at the ground in obvious thought.

Roxas felt uncomfortable, knowing Axel was gay or possibly bi, and suddenly remembered that Axel mentioned the name Demyx earlier. Bothered by this new found fact about Axel, Roxas shied farther away from him and tucked his fingerless gloved hands in his pocket. He couldn't wrap his mind around it, but and he didn't like the unwelcome uneasiness. There was a pinpointed memory that he was trying to recall in the explanation for why, but he couldn't remember it well enough to bring it to the surface. Instead of trying to remember, he decided leaving would be best.

"…I have to go right now."

"Huh? Really?"

"Yeah, big English paper, see you." Casting his eyes to the ground, the younger male began to walk faster away from Axel.

"Hey, wait! We should, uhh, chill sometime! I mean, I can help you with the paper."

Roxas slowed in his slight hurry. "What?

"I mean, even though I'm a performing arts major, I still like writing." Axel caught up to the blonde and grinned.

"Yeah…" Roxas groaned inwardly. So he went to school around here and was a performing arts major? Why did that sound oddly like the school he went to? At least he was still in college and probably around the same age, which meant the whole conversation they were having wouldn't be too odd.

"When's it due?"

"Wednesday at midnight…"

"Been putting it off, eh Roxas?"

It was strange, but Roxas could feel his chest tighten at the mention of his name from the other's lips. Ignoring the weird fact, he continued on as he had before. "H-have not! I'll get it done!"

"Mmm, sure. So I'll come over tomorrow and help you?"

"Sur- I mean, wait what?

"Tomorrow sound good?"

"I don't need help!"

Roxas saw past Axel, and tried to decide in his tired mind what was more important, the fact that he could fail his paper or the fact that he could get harassed again. He did suck at writing and disliked the topic the paper was about, and Axel did seem like he enjoyed it. Hmm, with his tired mind, passing a class seemed more important, so letting a complete stranger into his house who was gay, who got him fired from his job, and who liked to harass people was perfectly acceptable. Yep. He hoped his brother Sora wasn't at home tomorrow. He didn't want to be responsible for his death, too. He could already see the over dramatic response from his brother, and honestly, it slightly amused Roxas.

"Maybe," Roxas said with caution.

Great, he was letting a stranger to where he lived – he could even be a fucking serial killer! Geez, if Axel really was a creeper or something, Roxas was way too trusting, and he felt like he already knew the consequences. He felt something in the pit of his stomach rise and knew there was something he had to remember, something as to why he shouldn't let Axel come over, but he tried to ignore the uneasiness, and shoved it in a drawer to be forgotten.

"You won't regret it, Blondie!"

"Roxas! My name is Roxas!" He chided Axel for keep calling him Blondie, and yet he couldn't help the small laugh that slipped by. Now that he thought about it, Blondie was a pretty funny nickname, and yet he was sure there was a reason or a memory why he so vehemently disowned it, so hatefully didn't want to be called it.

"Oh, right. Sorry, Roxy." Axel looked over at Roxas and smirked as he saw the Blonde shake a bit from the cold, then finally stop after he realized the new nickname Axel so kindly bestowed upon him. Roxas opened his mouth to say something, but closed right after he realized it probably wasn't a good idea.

As they walked a bit more, Roxas realized he was only a couple more blocks from campus, and thought it was best to follow his instincts just a little bit. Stopping suddenly, the blonde decided it was best to keep Axel from knowing exactly where he lived. Though he had gained a better opinion of Axel, he wasn't going to go about trusting him completely.

"Bye, um, Axel. I'm only a little ways away, so I'm good from here."

"Are you sure?"

"It's fine," Roxas replied assuredly.

"See ya then, Roxy. Don't forget about tomorrow!" Axel waved goodbye and started in the opposite direction, which had Roxas wondering how far he had gone out of his way.

Until he could see the red head's form no longer, his body relaxed and he let out a breath that he felt like he was holding for quite some time. As he trudged home through some ice on the sidewalk, he noticed something stuffed in one of his coast pockets the he didn't notice before. Pulling out the crumpled piece of paper, he opened it up to see a phone number scribbled on it and Axel's name above it. When Axel had put the paper in there, he didn't know, but Roxas shoved it back in his pocket and sighed. He could already feel that something was changing.

He could feel his shell crack just a little bit, and it bothered him in more ways than he would have liked to admit.

* * *

><p>Finally in front of his dorm door, Roxas turned the key to his brother's and his quite spacious dorm room. Since Traverse Arts was quite a special university, it wasn't strange to have such nice dorm rooms, and since each had two bathrooms, two bedrooms, a kitchen, and a nice living area, there was more than enough privacy. This was another reason why Roxas wasn't complaining too much about living off of campus, because this was certainly fine for now, though the furniture and appliances were quite bland and crappy.<p>

As he walked in the door, Roxas almost jumped when he saw a figure right by the entrance in the darkness. Only when he flicked on the lights quickly did he notice it was Riku. The silverette must've just got in, because he was wiggling off of his boots while leaning against the wall.

"Hey midget," he greeted.

"Sora and I are the same height, you know," Roxas growled.

"At least Sora is fun." Riku threw a smirk over to Roxas and then blonde's eyes narrowed. Seeing a challenge was imminent, Roxas continued the little side commentary with some colorful language.

"Whatever, artsy hipster douchebag."

"Fashionista bitch," Riku retorted.

"Oh, real creative," Roxas laughed sarcastically.

"Come on, Roxas. If you loosened up a bit, maybe you would actually have fun," Riku offered, as if he had tried this conversation many a times before.

Roxas sighed. "Please, please, I really don't need another lecture tonight, Riku."

Riku saw a grimace in Roxas' face and sighed. Instead of asking what was the matter, because that always appeared to be the wrong thing to do with Roxas, he left the job of finding out the blonde's problem to Sora.

"You worry Sora sometimes." Riku glanced over towards the Blonde, concern obvious in his expression. Roxas was really getting sick of this protective crap about now. He could at least let up a little bit, but of course that was apparently impossible for good ol' mother hen.

"Which in turn worries you too, right?"

Roxas knew his brother and Riku were close, but he also knew it was just a brotherly sort of love. Well, he thought so. Riku was over so damn much they practically lived together, and they were soon like three brothers together, since Riku barely had a family to go home to. Roxas was sympathetic…sometimes.

Most of the time he and Riku just fought, but Roxas knew it wasn't actually meant to severely harm the other's feelings. Ninety Nine percent of the time it was nothing more than a brotherly banter. Sometimes they would even tussle, but it wasn't like anyone ever got hurt, and everything usually started because Roxas would get pissed when Riku would ask if he was okay, which was almost every fucking day. Roxas knew there were other reasons he fought with Riku, but like hell he was going to say it out loud. He would never admit it, but he was sort of jealous of his brother's divided attention to Riku; he always did believe Sora was too nice for his own good. In fact, Riku and Sora were the only two people he had ever been close to besides Naminé.

"If there's ever a problem, you know I-

"I know, Riku. Thanks…"

To change the subject away from this brotherly crap, Roxas decided to bother Riku in another way. "Did you finish your _masterpiece_ yet?" Roxas prodded, which resulted in Riku rolling his eyes.

"Did you finish that _outfit_ for Naminé yet?" Riku retorted with a chuckle.

Ah, that's right. Riku or Sora didn't know he wasn't with Naminé anymore. He flinched at hearing Naminé's name and saw that Riku noted this, so in attempts to cover up his facial expression, he placed a stoic expression on his features instead and looked away. To keep from directing his thoughts away to a place he didn't want them, Roxas remarked sarcastically, "no, but if you want it I'm sure it would fit you."

Roxas laughed dryly as he saw frustration lines appearing above Riku's eyebrow and heard incoherent curses, but Riku stalked off to the kitchen. Roxas followed, a question still lingering in his head.

"Where's Sora?"

"Partying…as usual." Riku's nose wrinkled and he held his head in his hand for a moment, as if to keep his feet on the ground.

"Why didn't you join him?"

"Terrible hangover," Riku grumbled.

"You two are going to die of liver cancer," Roxas muttered.

"What do you want for dinner?" Riku asked, ignoring the blonde's sarcasm.

"Can't I cook it by myself? Honestly?"

"No, because I know all you're going to do is eat ramen and then complain about how you don't eat healthy."

"Yes father," Roxas huffed sarcastically, "and shouldn't you remind me about how the new semester starts tomorrow?" Crossing his arms, he walked out of the room to the living area and plopped down on the couch. Quietly, to himself, he thought about the day's events again and thought it so weird.

He had made friends with the man who got him fired! Wasn't there something, well, strange about that? How in the hell did that happen anyway? Who made friends with people who got them fired? Wait, like hell they were even friends! Pah, it was more like a forced acquaintanceship. Yet, Roxas had a weird feeling in the pit of his stomach, as if he knew that tonight wouldn't be the last time he saw the red head. He could almost guarantee that the man would show up in his life again, and that irked him.

Rolling on the couch, Roxas grabbed a pillow and shoved it to his face. Life liked to piss him off, didn't it? Adding in things that he knew would cause issues, life just toyed with him like he was its little bitch. Yeah, he admitted it. He wondered why it would take away his job and his girlfriend, the two biggest identities in life, and shove loneliness down his throat. Suddenly, just like back in the store before the red head walked it, he became down on himself and a sense of sadness came over him.

With a dry heave, he grabbed his sides and coughed. No, he had to hold in in and save it for later tonight, but he couldn't help his eyes beginning to sting again. Another dry heave later and Roxas almost lost it. Well, before he heard Riku speak up in the kitchen and interrupt the depressing thoughts mingling in his mind, leaving him scrambling to suppress the overpowering, suddenly monstrous feeling inside.

"Sora told me about that guy who was bothering you at work. Has he left you alone?" the silverette asked from the kitchen.

"Yeah, yeah," Roxas responded as quickly as he could while trying to pick himself back up before Riku spotted him. He could hear footsteps approaching the living room and managed to compose himself before Riku walked in. The older man eyed him for a moment, but continued the previous conversation nonetheless.

"You're a terrible liar, just like Sora. Want me to walk you to work tomorrow?"

"N-no, no!" Shit, he didn't want Riku finding out he lost his job! He would never hear the end of it! Riku had a knack for being an asshole about how long someone could keep their job. Riku raised an eyebrow, and Roxas stumbled over his next few sentences until Riku crossed his arms.

"I-I mean," Roxas stuttered, trying to cover up the fact that he lost his job.

"Roxas," Riku started with a warning tone.

"Why are you so concerned anyway?" Roxas tested. Glaring up at Riku, Roxas noticed a twitch in his expression and his eyebrows furrow. Before the blonde could take note at the subtle change, Riku looked away quickly and waved his hand as if to dismiss the blonde's question.

"Fine then," Riku backpedaled, and instead of answering the question, went to check the food in the kitchen.

Roxas raised an eyebrow at Riku's strange behavior, but pinpointed the weirdness on his hangover. Now that he thought about it, Riku hadn't really beaten him up or tried to be an asshole lately. Huh, weird. Leaning back on the couch and putting his feet up, Roxas sighed and closed his eyes.

He wondered if class tomorrow would be just as strange as today had been and what the new semester would hold.

He also began to wonder about Naminé again, which was an issue he would rather visit later than sooner. He knew he would have to accept it eventually - she was gone and wasn't coming back. She wasn't his anymore.

Oh, why the hell did it have to hurt so much?

**A/N:** So, yeah, this is a longer chapter, and quite honestly, I think the other chapters will be this long as well. I didn't even realize how long it was getting until I looked at the word count. Remember, reviews shall kindle the fire that is my willpower to write more! :D SO, on that note, I hope you liked it!


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